Henrik Gabriel Porthan (8 November 1739 – 16 March 1804)[1] was a professor and rector at theRoyal Academy of Turku,Finland, which was then part of theKingdom of Sweden. He was a scholar sometimes known asThe Father ofFinnish History.[2] Porthan's legacy greatly influenced the rise of theFinnish national culture andromanticism of the early 19th century.[3]
He was born atViitasaari inTavastia, Finland. His parents were Sigfrid Porthan and Kristina Juslenius. His father was avicar who became mentally ill in 1744. He was raised by his uncle Gustaf Juslenius (1702–1774) who was the vicar ofKronoby inOstrobothnia County. In 1754, at the age of 15, Porthan entered theRoyal Academy of Turku (nowUniversity of Helsinki). He was a student of professorDaniel Juslenius (1676–1752) who later served as theBishop of Borgå.[4]
Porthan was awarded his Master of Philosophy in 1760. In 1762, he became an associate professor. He was a professor 1777–1804 and served as rector 1786–1787 and 1798–1799.[5]
He became aFennophile and brought Finnish history-writing, study ofmythology andfolk poetry, and otherhumanistic sciences to an international level. HisDe Poësi Fennica (published in five parts 1776-78), a study on Finnish folk poetry, had great importance in awakening public interest in theKalevala-poetry andFinnish mythology, and the study was also the basis of all later study of the poetry.[6][5]
He was among the founders of theAurora Society that advocated Finnish literary pursuits and was the editor of the first Finnish newspaper,Tidningar ugifne af et sällskap i Åbo, founded in 1771. He instructed Kristian Erik Lencqvist (1761–1808) whose 1782 dissertationDe superstitione veterum Fennorum theoretica et practica was a seminal study of historic Finnish customs.[7][5]
Porthan was also the instructor of poetFrans Mikael Franzén (1772–1847) and also inspired the following generation of Finnish authors, poets and researchers, many of whom were among the founders of theFinnish Literature Society in 1831.[8][5]
Porthan died in Turku in 1804.[9]
ThePorthania building of the University of Helsinki is named after Porthan.[10]
The main edition of Porthan's works remainsOpera selecta. Skrifter i urval, ed. by Sven Gabriel Elmgren and Josef August Schauman, 5 vols (Helsingfors: Finska Litteratur-Sällskapets tryckeri, 1859–73). Scans of the original publications are now available viahttp://www.doria.fi.
